The Buffalo Bills hosted the winners of the fifth annual M&T Bank Draft Day Challenge on the field at Ralph Wilson Stadium at the Bills-Raiders game and their experience was priceless.
Shane Prouty from Orchard Park, NY, Seth Maser of Herkimer, NY, Diane McNamara from Grand Island, NY, AnnMarie Grant of Schenectady, NY and Kevin McLaughlin from Byron, NY correctly selected Marcell Dareus as the Bills first pick of the NFL Draft in April. As part of their prize, the they received a Bills game day experience package for two with all-inclusive M&T Bank Club tickets, pregame field passes and met Bills future Hall of Fame wide reciever Andre Reed at the game on Sunday. In addition, each winner received a Buffalo Bills helmet.
A record 12,681 fans participated in the buffalobills.com online contest and nearly 16% of the fans correctly predicted Dareus as Buffalo's top selection in this year's draft. The five winners were randomly chosen among the contestants who had the correct selection.
Reed, Bills All-Time Team member, met with the winners of the contest on the field, signed autographs and took photos. Reed was also the "Leader of the Charge" at the top of the Bills M&T Bank tunnel where he waved the Bills flag to help lead the team out of the tunnel during pregame festivities.
"Successfully engaging fans with fun and entertaining promotions plays a major role in our long-standing partnership with M&T Bank, and this year's record breaking participation with the Draft Day Challenge is a great example of the commitment that we share," said Bruce Popko, Bills senior vice president of business development. "The Bills and M&T Bank will continue providing special offers and promotions that Bills fans and M&T Bank customers will enjoy."
"The number of entries in the contest continues to grow, with Bills fans becoming more involved with the team during the NFL draft," said Peter J. Eliopoulos, chief marketing officer of M&T Bank. "As the NFL season has evolved to capture fan attention year-round, M&T Bank continues to build on our partnership with the Bills to offer unique value to fans who enjoy these promotions and customers who want to show their team loyalty by using our exclusive Bills checking package."
M&T Bank, *established in Buffalo, N.Y., in 1856, is one of the top 20 largest U.S. commercial bank holding companies, with approximately $68.4 billion in assets. M&T Bank operates more than 750 branches and 1800 ATMs in New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Delaware, New Jersey and the District of Columbia. Further information is available at www.mtb.com.*
